The present invention relates to a cookie dispensing apparatus, particularly suitable for dispensing cookies to be included as part of the assembly of a frozen confection such as an ice cream sandwich.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,481,282 of Richard Roland Reynolds discloses a method and apparatus for making ice cream sandwiches in which a frozen dessert in a plastic, flowable condition is continuously extruded from a downwardly facing extruder nozzle over a conveyor on which wafers have been deposited from an automatic dispenser. In timed relation to the conveyor speed, a severing element is passed through the extruded length of dessert emerging from the nozzle to sever a slice of dessert that falls onto each wafer. The conveyor with wafer and deposited dessert passes through a freezing chamber to solidify the dessert. Optionally, prior to passing through the freezing chamber, a second wafer is placed on the frozen confection to make a sandwich. Additional layers of edible material and wafers can also be provided by the use of the apparatus of U.S. Pat. No. 3,481,282. The disclosure of U.S. Pat. No. 3,481,282 is incorporated herein by reference as is the disclosure of U.S. Pat. No. 2,739,545 referred to therein.
In the apparatus of the Reynolds patent, the wafers are stored in a stack aligned by upright members. Immediately below the upright members is a block having a first vertical passage directly below and aligned with the stack of wafers. The first passage opens into a horizontal bore which in turn opens into a second vertical passage offset from the first passage. A dispensing plate having an orifice the same size as the first and second passages of the dispensing block is adapted to reciprocate in the horizontal bore of the block from a first position in which the lowermost wafer from the stack falls into the orifice in the dispensing plate to a second position in which the orifice in the dispensing plate is in alignment with the second passage in the block to allow the wafer to fall through the second passage in the block. The dispensing plate is actuated by a dispenser actuating cylinder whose operation is timed with reference to the entire assembly line.
The arrangement of the Reynolds patent is suitable for wafers which have smooth finishes and surfaces. However, when the product to be dispensed has an uneven finish or surface such as the surfaces and edges of a wire cut or die cut cookie, the sliding of the cookies against themselves and the apparatus causes problems.
Thus when it is desired to dispense a rough surfaced finished product such as a chocolate chip cookie or the like, the wafer dispenser of the Reynolds patent does not work well.